Fluid control apparatus



Aug. 14, 1951 A. N. voRlPAlEFF FLUID CONTROL APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet lFiled Feb. 4, 1948 lllllllllllllfllllllh f BY "1] M.

ATTORNEYS Aug. 14, 1951 A, N. voRlPAlEl-F 2,563,978

FLUID CONTROL APPARATUS Filed Feb. 4, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 nwEm-ORvATTORN EYS a control apparatus.

Patented ug. 14, 95

UNITED s'rllTEfs l` PATENT ovl-*FICE i ,2,563,978 FLUIDCONTltQL-APPARATUS vAlexander N. Voripaiel, Jackson Heights, N@ Y.

Application February 4, i948, Serial No. 6,292

1 The invention relates to a locking device for By control apparatus ismeant any apparatus, suchas a valve, door, gate, electric switcher vthelike, by which passage 'through a conduit, an opening or a carrier ispe'rmitted or blocked.v

The locking 'device or the present invention has a wide range cfutility, and may, for example, be used in connection with a fuel valvecontrol mechanism, suchlas one employed in aliquid or gaseous fuelsupply line leading to an intern-al combustion engine furnace or otherpoint of fuel consumption.

One object of the presen-t invention is to provide a new and improvedlocking device of the general character described, which forms a smallcompact unit or accessory, which may be easily tted or attached to acontrol mechanism, which is easily operable to lock rsaid controlmechanism in predetermined control position, and which is effective torender said locking device and said control apparatus pick-proof.

As a feature of the present invention, the locking device is adapted tobe attached as a compact unit or accessory 'to' a control apparatus,'andi when attached is operable to lock said control apparatus inpredetermined position and at the same time to move a part of saiddevice into protective position to render said lockingv device and saidcontrol apparatus pick-proof against unauthorized entry; This protectivepart is separate from 'the locking means for the control apparatus, butis located adjacent thereto and forms a self-contained compact unittherewith.

As a vfurther feature, the locking' device is attached to the controlapparatus through releasable mounting means such as screws and bolts,and the locking device is operable not only to lock said controlapparatus against movement but also to move simultaneously a protectivepart or member on said locking device into position to render saidmounting means unavailable for release. In its preferred' embodiment,this protective member takes the form of a housing movable by theoperation of.locking the control apparatus, vinto position to enclosethe mounting means and render it inaccessible for unauthorizedtampering.

The locking devicey has certain of its vital or 5 critical partspreferably manufactured of veryl hard alloy material, so that theycannot be easily bent, cut lor broken without destroying the controlapparatus.

One of the specific uses of the locking vdevice of the present inventionmay be in connection l5 claims. (01.137468) I 2 with the carburetor ofan internal combustion engine, and the locking device is operable inthis connection to close positively the fuel inlet valve in the supplyline to the engine and to Alock said valve against unauthorizedtampering. In the case 9i/hereA the locking device is mounted in anautomobile, it would be effective in preventing theft of saidautomobile. In every otherfcase where the locking device is used inconnection with the control of fuel from a source of supply, said deviceprevents unauthorized tampering with said source of supply.

In one embodimentof the invention, the locking device is operable vintolocking position by manipulation near the device, While in ari-Otherembodiment, the locking device although attached close tothe controlapparatus 'is' operable by manipulation from a remote station. In thelatter case, where the locking device isattached to the fuel line of anautomobile, the remote station may be located on the dash of the auto'-mobile.

Other Afeatures and advantages of the invention herein will be notedfrom the following de- -scription and the accompanying drawingsillustratin'g' the preferred product embodying the features herein. Inthese drawings,

Fig. 1 is a top pian viewof a carburetor with the accessory mountedthereon;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevational view of' the carburetor and theVimproved accessory and illustrating the constructionalfeatures thereof;

Fig.V 3 shows the accessory in position on the carburetor and providesfor the remote control locking of the accessory; and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of one of the locking portion oithe accessory.

When the novel device isA incorporated in or attached to a carburetor',its main function is to shut off the fuell at a predetermined time andallow the engine to turn over a few times until most ofthe liquid fuelremaining in the carburetor has been exhausted. In this manner theautomobile does not have fuel on which to run, and thus' the motivepower unit of the automobile or car becomes unusable.

it is well known that heretofore automobiles were easily Istelen by aquick' and easy bridging of Vthe electrical connections so 'that theengine may be started without trouble. By incorporating the improvednovel locking device herein, 'the considerable manipulation and withoutsizeable toolsl and without doing considerable repair and 3 without suchdamage to the fuel system that could not be repaired without the use ofnew parts. All of these Operations take time and attract attention.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, the locking device ofthe present invention is shown assembled with or attached to a controlapparatus, which in the specific form shown comprises the carburetor ofan internal combustion engine having a carburetor bowl I5 associatedwith a valve mechanism for the supply of fuel in an automobile and afloat member Iii pivoted at I1 for moving a valve I8 to its valve seatI9 to close off the supply of fuel from fuel line 20. A plate 22 coversthe bowl I5 and has openings therein for receiving the ends of fasteningelements such as bolts 23 and 24.

The novel locking device adapted for original installation or foraccessory installation or ,attachment to the control apparatus, is shownin its preferred form as an accessory body 26 having a frame comprisingan upright extending body portion 21 and a lower at or plate portion 28which preferably is ailixed to the plate 22. The heads of the fasteningelement means 23 and 24 are usually smaller than depressions 29 and 36formed in the plate portion 28.

This accessory body 26 may be held in position on the carburetor in anysatisfactory manner so as to prevent unauthorized disassembly or removalof the accessory and in the preferred disclosure herein, a cover 3| isprovided so that it will extend over the fastening elements 23 and 24.Projections from this cover 3| are positioned so that they Will enterthe spaces 29 and 3|), thereby preventing this cover from being twistedout of position and the fastening elements 23 and 24 from being removed.This cover is also provided with a slot 32 which allows the cover toslide around the neck 33 of the accessory body 26. y In order to preventunauthorized destruction or changes in the construction of thisaccessory device, the accessory body 26 and the cover 3| may be made ofany suitable alloy material that will resist destruction. It is usualand preferred herein that such alloys have high hardness.

Within the upright part 21 of the accessory body 26, there is providedsuitable apparatus Vwhich may be manipulated by any satisfactory meanssuch as by a key inserted in a slot 34 of a lock 36 for the purpose ofmoving the float element I6 to close the valve I8 on the seat I9, and atthe same time to move some of its own parts so that there will not beany exposed portion of the accessory, or the top of the carburetor lthat can be manipulated by unauthorized persons for disassemblypur-poses.

Instead of having the lock mounted on the upper part 21 of theaccessory, a suitable lock may be positioned at a remote point from theinstallation of the accessory, all as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. In thisremote control operation of the accessory parts, an arm 31 is employedto operate the moving parts of the accessory.

Inside of the accessory 26 it is preferred to provide a shaft 38 whichcan carry any suitable type of mechanism for moving the valve I8 againstits seat I9 thereby cutting off the supply of fuel. In this preferredstructure, the moving part between shaft 38 and the float mechanism I6is preferred to be flexible and in this instance constitutes a flexiblewire 39 which `passes over rollers 40 and down through cover 3| andplate portion 28 and plate 22 of the carburetor to en-..

4 gage the pivoted arm 4I carrying the float. It is preferred to havethis flexible wire 39 pass through the arm 4| and have a relativelylarge head 42 provided on the underside of the arm 4I. An opening 43 inthe arm 4I is sufficiently large to allow the arm to pivot about pivotpoint I'I without restricting the movement of the arm 4| when performingits normal operation of supplying fuel as demanded by the motive powerunit or engine of the automobile while running. The dotted lines show inthe bottom of Fig. 2 the float in a lower position and show the wire 39in loose form and in a position that does not in any manner bind orguide or interfere with the normal movements of the float I6 and the arm4 I. Thus, the valve in the fuel supply line can be moved atpredetermined times to close position, and this movement may beaccomplished by the key operating the shaft 38 or in operating the arm31.

One of the preferred means of assembling the novel accessory device tothe carburetor is shown in cross section in Fig. 2. In the desiredconstruction it is preferred to provide as mounting or attaching means aheavy wall tube 44 which passes through openings in cover 3|, plateportion 28 and plate 22, as they are assembled to have these openingsproperly in registry. If desired, this tubing may be of any alloy and ofhigh hardness. This tube 44 may be fastened in position in any suitablemanner but it is preferred to lprovide the ends of the tube with threadsfor receiving nuts 46 and 41 which when screwed tightly firmly andreleasably hold the accessory on to the carburetor.

With this preferred construction of the accessory, and its assembly onthe carburetor as thus far described, it will be noted that there is noway of removing the bolts or set screws 23 and 24 and if these cannot bereached then the only entrance to the interior of the accessory is thespace just above the cover 3|, as shown in Fig. 2. In order to preventunauthorized release of the nut 41 after it has been screwed intoholding position, there is provided a suitable protective slide memberin the form of a housing and more specifically a sleeve so that atdefmite times it may be moved downwardly and around the nut 41 andthereby prevent unauthorized entrance into the accessory. It will benoted that the lower end of sleeve 48 goes into the countersunk part ofcover 3|. Thus, when the valve is closed by the operation of theaccessory, no fuel can flow through the valve mechanism and theaccessory cannot be tampered with to bypass the valve in its closedposition.

In the most satisfactory manner of operating the fiexible wire 39 andthe sleeve 48 in the accessory device, it is preferred to provide a rack49 on the end of rod 31 and to provide a rack 50 in the side of sleeve48. A suitable sprocket wheel 5| is provided on shaft 38 and when thiswheel is operated by a key in slot 34 or by the movement of .rod 31, theflexible wire 39 will be wound on shaft 38 and sleeve 48 will be moveddownwardly to enclose the nut 41. This sleeve 48 is also preferably madeof a high strength alloy which will resist destruction by most anysizeable tool, and it is especially hardened so that the use of ahacksaw would require long and tedious work before the sleeve could becut. Thus, there is provided a very satisfactory pickproof type ofaccessory for mounting on a fuel supply mechanism.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4 wherein the remote control operation willbe described, the operating arm 31 is surrounded by a heavy Wall pipe ortubing 52 of alloy material of high hardness and one which will resistdestruction by substantially all of the smaller and lighter tools.

In the preferred installation of this accessory bolt 59 which holds thepiping 54 in position on the dash. The lock receiving part E ispreferred to be constructed so that it can be pushed into collar tothereby move arm 31 and operate the gear 5l, thereby moving wire 39 andlever 4I to close the valve. This movement acts to move sleeve 48. Theengine will continue in operation until some of the gas in the bowl l5has been consumed and then the engine will stop operation, because oflack of fuel. The key 62 of the lock may then be turned to nally lockthe arm 31 in its position of having closed the valve i8.

It will be understood that various modifications and changes may be madein the preferred form of the invention herein, and such modiiicationsand changes are to be understood as part of this invention, as outlinedin the following claims.

The invention claimed is:

1. In a fluid supply line, the combination of a valve mechanism therein,automatic means for regulating the position of said valve in response tothe demand for iiow of iluid, a structure for supporting said valve, anaccessory, means for attaching said accessory to said structure, saidaccessory including means for locally covering said attaching meansagainst unauthorized access, means operable to positively close and locksaid valve in closed position, and means to render said structure andsaid accessory substantially proof against unauthorized operation ofsaid valve, said last mentioned means being geared to said valve closingmeans so as to be operated thereby to form a compact, self-containedunit therewith.

2. In a fuel supply line, the combination of a valve mechanism therein,control means for the valve in said mechanism to govern the flow of fueltherethrough, an accessory body for assembly with said mechanism, a lockassociated with said body for locking its parts in predeterminedpositions, means for attaching said accessory body to said valvemechanism, said body when assembled on said control means covering saidattaching means against unauthorized access and permitting normally saidvalve to operate at predetermined times, and a moving mechanism withinsaid body Voperated by said lock to positively close said valve to stopthe iiow of fuel therethrough.

3. In a fuel supply line, the combination of a valve mechanism therein,automatic means for controlling the position of said valve in responseto demands for fuel, a valve operating accessory assembled with saidvalve mechanism to move said valve at predetermined times to completelystop the ow of fuel therethrough, a lock associated with said accessory,means for positively holding said accessory to said automatic controlmeans, and a movable element within the locking accessory operating toclose over said holding means when said lock has been moved to itslocked position.

4. An accessory for attachment to a fluid supply valve mechanism,comprising a body to be fastened to said valve mechanism, means forfastening said body to said valve mechanism, a cover for engaging aportion of said body and for covering said fastening means againstunauthorized access, an engaging means for positively holding said bodyand said cover to said valve mechanism, a movable element carried bysaid accessory and movable to cover said engaging means at predeterminedtimes, an extension member carried by said body and adapted when movedto one position to cause a valve in said valve mechanism to be closed,and an operating means carried by said body for operating said extensionmember to close said valve and to move said movable element to coversaid engaging means to further render the accessory proof againstunauthorized tampering.

5. A locking device for a control apparatus comprising means forattaching said locking device to said control apparatus, a removable keyfor said locking device, means responsive to the operation of said keyfor locking said control apparatus in predetermined position, a housingfor protectively and locally shutting-in said attaching means againstaccess, and for rendering thereby said attaching means proof againstunauthorized removal in the locked position of said control apparatus,said housing being supported for movement from inoperative position tosaid protective shutting-in position, and means responsive to theoperation of said key for moving said housing into said protectiveposition at the same time said control apparatus is locked.

ALEXANDER N VORIPAIEFF.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,211,756 Reid Jan. 9, 19171,365,694 Jernstedt Jan. 18, 1921 1,403,086 Kennedy Jan. 10, 19221,404,463 Meunier Jan. 24, 1922 1,700,989 Pinkerton Feb. 5, 19292,022,430 Nold Nov. 26, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 52,378Sweden Aug. 2, 1922 144,529 Great Britain June 11, 1920

